At a Glance
- Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto team outlined 11 areas where blockchain can support AI.
- Focus on identity, payments, and ownership.
- Nearly half of internet traffic now comes from automated sources.
Why it matters: The map shows how crypto could become the neutral layer that lets users keep control of data, identity, and money as AI systems grow.
Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto team announced a comprehensive set of ideas that could reshape how AI systems are built and monetized on the internet. In a series of posts and a white-paper, the firm outlined 11 areas where blockchain networks intersect with artificial intelligence, arguing that crypto infrastructure can counter the growing centralization of AI by giving users control over identity, data ownership, and payments.
AI’s New Interface: A 11-Point Roadmap
The firm’s January 20 post on X framed the web as moving toward interfaces dominated by AI prompts. The post raised questions about who controls data, distribution, and revenue as traditional websites lose traffic to AI-driven content. Andreessen Horowitz said blockchains can provide a neutral base layer for AI systems by:
- Supporting persistent user context
- Enabling portable identities for AI agents
- Delivering on-chain payments that work without platform gatekeepers
The 11 areas cover a broad spectrum:
| Area | Focus | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | Decentralized proof of personhood | World’s Proof of Human |
| Trust | Portable AI agent identities | Solana Attestation Service |
| Payments | Micropayments between agents and users | AI-based revenue sharing |
| Data Access | Web crawlers paying sites directly | On-chain data licensing |
| Infrastructure | DePIN for compute and energy | Gaming PCs and data centers |
| AI Agents | Agent-to-agent marketplaces | Open-source AI tools |
| Content | Decentralized hosting | IPFS and Filecoin |
| Governance | DAO-run AI projects | Decentralized funding |
| Monetization | Tokenized content | Creator royalties |
| Collaboration | Cross-chain AI tooling | Polkadot bridges |
| Privacy | Off-chain credentials linked to wallets | Solana Attestation Service |
The post highlighted that nearly half of internet traffic now comes from automated sources, while more website operators are blocking AI scrapers. This tension has pushed companies like Cloudflare to sell blocking tools. The firm’s map does not claim these systems are close to mass adoption; many ideas are long-term.
Identity and Trust: Decentralized Proof of Personhood
One of the most prominent concepts is decentralized proof of personhood. The goal is to help platforms distinguish humans from bots without relying on centralized ID providers. The post referenced existing projects such as World’s Proof of Human and newer systems like the Solana Attestation Service, which lets users link off-chain credentials to wallets while keeping data private.
- World’s Proof of Human – a non-centralized identity system.
- Solana Attestation Service – links credentials to wallets.
- Privacy focus – keeps personal data off the public ledger.
By providing a verifiable human identity, developers can build AI tools that trust the user’s input and reduce spam or automated manipulation.
Payments: Micropayments and Revenue Sharing
Payments were another recurring theme. Andreessen Horowitz described how blockchains could support micropayments between AI agents, content creators, and end users. The model includes:
- Revenue sharing when AI tools rely on third-party content.
- Systems where web crawlers pay sites directly for access to data.
These mechanisms could replace current ad-based revenue models and give creators direct compensation for their work.
Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePIN)
The firm highlighted decentralized physical infrastructure networks, or DePIN, as a way to pool unused compute and energy resources for AI training and inference. By aggregating hardware from gaming PCs and data centers, DePIN networks aim to reduce reliance on large cloud providers.
- Compute sharing – gamers contribute idle GPU time.
- Energy pooling – data centers share surplus power.
- AI training – distributed workloads across the network.
DePIN could democratize access to powerful AI training resources, making it easier for smaller teams to develop advanced models.
Industry Reactions: Ethereum and Beyond
Many of the ideas echoed concerns raised elsewhere in the crypto industry. For example, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently said that he plans to leave centralized social media behind in favor of decentralized platforms, arguing that shared data layers allow competition without locking users into a single interface. The Ethereum Foundation launched a new AI team focused on agentic payments and coordination, aiming to make Ethereum a settlement layer for AI agents and machine-to-machine transactions.
Foundation developer Davide Crapis said at the time that AI systems need neutral infrastructure for value transfer and reputation, rather than relying on a few large technology firms.
The Bigger Picture
Andreessen Horowitz’s outline does not claim immediate mass adoption. Several use cases, including AI companions owned by users or fully open agent-to-agent markets, are described as longer-term ideas. Still, the firm’s map shows where investors and builders think crypto could fit as AI systems move from isolated tools into always-on intermediaries between people, data, and money.
The firm’s message is clear: crypto can counter AI centralization by giving users control over data, identity, and economic participation. By providing a neutral infrastructure, blockchain could become the backbone of the next generation of AI-driven internet services.
Key Takeaways
- Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto team outlined 11 areas where blockchain can support AI.
- Focus areas include identity, payments, and decentralized infrastructure.
- Nearly half of internet traffic now comes from automated sources.
- Decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN) could reduce reliance on large cloud providers.
- Ethereum’s new AI team and statements from Vitalik Buterin echo similar goals.
- The roadmap is long-term; many ideas are still in the conceptual stage.
The crypto community watches closely as these ideas move from theory to practice, potentially reshaping how AI systems are built, monetized, and governed.
